Dr. Eric Shaw
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Dr. Eric H. Shaw Spring Term, 2005 Business East 163

Telephone: 561 297-3639 E-mail: shaw@fau.edu Web www.fau.edu/~shaw

I. COURSE DESCRIPTION

This course focuses on decision making within a context of strategic marketing planning. Decision-making is the process of developing, evaluating and choosing among alternative courses of action to solve a problem or achieve a goal. Almost all of the important decisions made by marketing executives involve aspects of strategic marketing planning. Marketing Planning includes: (1) establishing objectives, given anticipated environmental conditions and existing organizational constraints, and (2) developing a marketing strategy to achieve the objectives. Marketing strategy involves: (a) targeting customers and (b) creating a marketing mix (including consideration of products and services, pricing, location, distribution, promotion, advertising, and market research). An effective marketing mix is one that satisfies customers and is also profitable for the organization.

This course is web-assisted using the computer platform “Blackboard.” You must have an available computer and access to the Internet to survive, let along thrive, in this course. One or two classes may be completely online.

II. COURSE OBJECTIVES

There are two primary (A & B) and three secondary (C, D & E) objectives in this course:

1. o develop your ability to integrate marketing concepts and principles, along with your own personal experiences, into a comprehensive logically coherent strategic marketing plan.

2. to develop your analytical skills in making complex decisions involving strategic and tactical marketing problems and issues.

3. to improve your oral and written communication skills.

4. to improve your ability to work effectively as part of a team.

5. to encourage you to apply the latest technological advances in marketing (such as the Internet/WWW, and presentation software) as tools for making more effective marketing decisions and presenting them to others.

III. COURSE STRATEGY

To achieve the objectives and facilitate Teaching and Learning in Class (TLC), the course employs a four-part strategy: (A) the Socratic Method, (B) decision-making based on case analysis and, (C) as well as (D) teamwork and class participation. the course follows a two part strategy: (A) making and presenting individual strategic or tactical marketing decisions based on cases and (B) integrating multiple decisions in a comprehensive strategic marketing plan based on a marketing simulation.

A. Socratic Method

Initially we will spend a few weeks discussing the general framework of the course as well as some important marketing concepts and analytical techniques. Rather than straight lectures, we will use the Socratic Method. You ask questions and I suggest answers or I ask questions and you suggest answers; and through the process of questioning and answering we work toward solutions. I could just lecture to you, but the “Law of Fast Forgetting” and my educational experience argues that you will not retain much of the material very long after the exam. On the other hand, by taking advantage of the “Law of Slow Learning” and following the pattern of answering questions and questioning answers inherent in the Socratic Method you will learn to teach yourself. So even if you forget an answer you will be capable of working out the solution on your own.

B. Case Analysis and Decision making

Following its early introduction at the Harvard Business School, around the turn of the twentieth century, marketing strategy (previously named marketing policy) courses have historically used case analysis to improve decision-making skills. The case method in business, just as it is used in legal or medical training, is based on situation diagnosis and prescription.

Each case presents you with a problem-solving situation faced by an organization. These situations emphasize various aspects of marketing strategy and tactics, such as identifying promising customer targets, developing appealing products and services, charging acceptable prices, creating effective advertising and promotions, finding desirable distribution outlets and selecting convenient locations. Based upon the information presented in the case, your task is to work the problem(s) and arrive at a solution. Beyond making decisions in the typical fashion, that is trial and error, we will develop a systematic procedure to significantly improve our decision-making capabilities. We will also learn to bring more brain power to bear on problem-solving by employing the visual cortex, in addition to the prefrontal cortex, to process information.

Based upon the information presented in the case, you will analyze the current business situation, including organizational strengths and weaknesses, and environmental opportunities and threats (SWOT). Given your analysis of the general business situation, using a diagrammatic outline format you will learn to: (1) identify problem symptoms, (2) define the central problem, (3) determine evaluative criteria or goals, (4) develop alternative solutions, (5) evaluate alternatives against the criteria, (6) choose the most effective alternative, and (7) deal with post-decision issues, such as tying-up loose ends and handling implementation concerns.

C. Strategic Marketing Plans and Marketing Simulation

The marketing simulation allows us to go beyond individual static decision and make multiple dynamic decisions that are inherent in a strategic marketing plan. A strategic marketing plan involves (1) analysis of the current business situation, (2) developing objectives, and (3) creating a marketing strategy.

Using our marketing simulation as the context, you will (1) analyze the general business situation in detail, including organizational strengths and weaknesses, environmental opportunities and threats, industry trends, and direct and indirect competition. Based upon your situation analysis, you will (2) develop an organizational mission and forecast performance goals. Based upon your objectives, you will (3) create a marketing strategy. Based upon your strategy, you will (a) segment and target potential customers. Based upon your customer targets, you will (b) choose an appropriate and integrated marketing mix, including: products and services, pricing, promotion and advertising, distribution and location, and other elements of the marketing program.

The marketing simulation provides a dynamic competitive environment that replicates many significant aspects of the "real world" of survival and growth in a business setting. You will confront the same challenges as if you were to start-up and run your own firm. In the marketing simulation you will make strategic and tactical business decisions. Your marketing mix decisions along with those of your competitors’ are inputs to a “demand generator” which simulates customer demand. The demand generator aggregates each customer segment’s demand based upon the effectiveness of each firm’s marketing mix. Adding each segment’s demand into aggregate customer demand produces the industry market potential, and each firm’s market share, sales, profits, etc. (outputs). Based on these outputs, and your anticipation of future customer trends, competitive reactions, etc., you input a new set of decisions, which in turn are transformed, via customer demand, into a new set of outputs; and the process continues until we have simulated about ten years of marketing decisions.

D. Teamwork and Class Participation

Case analysis involves teamwork. You will work in teams of 3 to 5 members. After the first few weeks of Socratic discussions, we will analyze cases using decision outlines, and develop strategic marketing plans based on the marketing simulation. The decision outlines are a maximum of three pages. The strategic marketing plans are a maximum of 20 pages (excluding graphs, charts, appendices). When due, all groups will write either the decision outline or the strategic marketing plan. One group will give an oral presentation in class, and the non-presenting students will constitute a critical audience who will challenge assumptions and question opinions. You are expected to attend every class, arrive on time, be prepared to address the issues, and take the role of an active participant in the day’s discussion.

IV. COURSE MATERIALS

1. Hartley, Robert F., Marketing Mistakes, 9th ed., John Wiley & Sons, 2004.

2. Bazerman, Max H., Judgment in Managerial Decision Making, 5th ed., John Wiley & Sons, 2002.

3. Shaw, Eric H., Marketing To Win, Revised, International Thompson Press, 2002, available free on Blackboard or FAU library electronic reserves.

4. Larreche, Jean-Claude and Hubert Gatignon, Markstrat Online, International Thompson Press, latest edition.

V. GRADING

Final grades are determined by your performance in achieving the course objectives, as reflected in the following criteria:

A.   Attendance B.   Oral Presentations C.   Class Participation D.   Strategic Marketing Plans E.   Decision Outlines F.   Simulation Performance G.   In-class Case

05%  15%  15%  20%  25%  10%  10% 100%

V. EVALUATION OF PERFORMANCE

Final grades are determined by your performance in achieving the course objectives, as reflected in the following criteria:

A.  Attendance B.  Oral Presentations C.  Class Participation D.  Strategic Marketing Plans E.  Decision Outlines F.  Simulation Performance G.  In-class Case

05% 10% 15% 20% 25% 10%  15% 100%

To benefit fully from the course you should assume the role of an active participant. Think and act professionally. Make sure to adequately prepare yourself to ask questions, question answers, and address the issues for class discussion. This, of course, includes regular classroom attendance.

Excessive unexcused absences (more than one), and consequent lack of participation, will result in a 10-point per absence reduction from your final grade. Regular attendance, raising important issues and asking relevant questions will improve your grade.

Feel free to question any aspect of your grade or your performance during the semester. You will receive an evaluation of your performance, on each of the above criteria, weekly or bi-weekly to chart your progress. You will also have an opportunity to evaluate this course and my performance at the end of the term.

VI. TENTATIVE SCHEDULE

WEEK	DISCUSSION TOPIC	ASSIGNMENT FOR NEXT CLASS
1-11	Introduction & Course Overview	Download Syllabus from Blackboard Do all Blackboard “Assignments”
1-18	Lecture: Decision-making	Read Markstrat Online (MS)
1-25	Lecture: Markstrat Online	Read Bazerman (B) Ch 1, MS Dec 1* Analyze Hartley (H) Case 1
2-01	Case 1 Decision Outline Presentation Presentation B Ch 1	Read B Ch 2, MS Dec 2* Analyze H Case 2
2-08	Case 2 Decision Outline Presentation Presentation B Ch 2	Read B Ch 3, MS Dec 3* Analyze H Case 3
2-15	Case 3 Decision Outline Presentation Presentation B Ch 3	Read B Ch 4, MS Dec 4* Analyze H Case 4
2-22	Case 4 Decision Outline Presentation Presentation B Ch 4	Read Shaw
3-01	Lecture: Strategic Marketing Planning	Write Strategic Marketing Plan MS Dec 5*
3-08	Spring Break
3-15	Strategic Marketing Plan Presentations	Read B Ch 5, MS Dec 6 Analyze H Case 5
3-22	Case 5 Decision Outline Presentation Presentation B Ch 5 Lecture: Marketing Response Model	Read B Ch 6, MS Dec 7 Analyze H Case 6
3-29	Case 6 Decision Outline Presentation Presentation B Ch 6 Lecture: Marketing Strategy	Read B Ch 8, MS Dec 8 Analyze H Case 7
4-05	Case 7 Decision Outline Presentation Presentation B Ch 8 Lecture: Segmentation & Targeting	Read B Ch 9, MS Dec 9 Analyze H Case 8
4-12	Case 8 Decision Outline Presentation, Presentation B Ch 8 Lecture: Product & Price Decisions	Read B Ch 10, MS Dec 10 Analyze H Case 9
4-19	Case 9 Decision Outline Presentation Presentation B Ch 10 Lecture: Communication & Distribution	Write Strategic Marketing Plan
4-26	Strategic Marketing Plan Presentations
5-03	In-class Case or Final Exam

Send comments to Dr. Shaw at shaw@fau.edu.

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